Joseph M. Pascuzzo, a physician who practices hematology, oncology and internal medicine in South Whitehall Township, threw his hat into the ring Saturday for the 15th District Congressional seat held by Paul McHale.

McHale, a Democrat, announced in November that he will not seek re-election.

Pascuzzo, a Republican, addressed more than 100 family members, friends and supporters in Allentown at the Columbian Home, a social club named for the Knights of Columbus, a mens-only group in the Catholic Church.

Pascuzzo had considered a late September kickoff for his campaign, but was called away for three weeks during September and early October with the 138th Fighter Squadron, based in Syracuse, N.Y., for a mission patrolling the no-fly zone over northern Iraq.

Pascuzzo has served as a lieutenant colonel and flight surgeon with the unit for the past five years.

As such, the current state of the military is of grave concern to him, and he promised his supporters that he would support no further cuts in the country's Defense Department budget, and would strive -- at the very least -- to keep its funding in line with inflation.

"We must regain the pride and strength of the Reagan years," he said.

Pascuzzo thanked McHale for his service to the Lehigh Valley and to the military, but wasted no time in slamming McHale's inability to stave off "the largest tax increase in history" in 1993.

"Dr. Joe," as he is called by supporters, favors a flat tax, which would eliminate the penalty to married working couples he said is built into the current graduated income tax system.

As a doctor, Pascuzzo also claimed wholehearted business backing from the Lehigh Valley's health care industry, and claimed to know more about that industry because he spent more than four years working as a medical director for Aetna Health Plans.

If elected, he said he would labor to put meaning behind the words "quality care," which he said are so often bandied about as a marketing tool by health maintenance organizations.

Pascuzzo also touched on education as a plank in his platform, saying a patient of his, an Allentown teacher, spent $500 of her own money on supplies for students who could not afford them.

He said he would form an educational advisory committee, which will include teachers and administrators from both public and private schools, to try to assess the needs of schools in the community.

Also, he said, there must be incentives for schools to strive for excellence, just as in business, with the best bonuses and salaries going to the best teachers and administrators.

"Even Russia finally realized that competition is good and makes people more productive. It is only when there is parental choice, that some schools will improve the product they offer," he said.